Joe Manganiello might just be the unluckiest man to have ever signed a contract with Warner Bros. and DC Films. At one stage, the actor’s Deathstroke was set to become an integral recurring part of the studio’s shared superhero universe, but as things stand, we’ve only seen him in three brief scenes in what amounts to just a couple of minutes in screen time.
His initial appearance during the post-credits stinger of Joss Whedon’s Justice League positioned him as the titular team’s next major threat, a thread which would have been picked up by any sequels, and that was just the tip of the iceberg. Not only was he set to get his own solo movie in what would have marked the Hollywood directorial debut of The Raid‘s action maestro Gareth Evans, but Slade Wilson was going to be the primary antagonist of Ben Affleck’s The Batman as well, while he was also part of The Suicide Squad script during the earliest drafts.
Having been lined up to headline a martial arts-infused comic book actioner, tear Bruce Wayne’s life apart from the inside out like a horror movie villain in a noir thriller inspired by David Fincher’s The Game and play a major role in Justice League 2 and 3, Manganiello’s Deathstroke instead found himself on the outside looking in.
However, the hugely enthusiastic response to his return in the epilogue of Zack Snyder’s Justice League has led to renewed calls for either a standalone movie or an HBO Max series, and as you can see from the reactions below, the actor himself has been leading the charge.
#DeathstrokeHBOMax pic.twitter.com/F0YmCl3tbz
— JOE MANGANIELLO (@JoeManganiello) April 5, 2021
⚔️It's time to make #DeathstrokeHBOMax trend⚔️
Tell the world why YOU want to see @JoeManganiello's Deathstroke get his own HBO Max movie or series and remember to use #DeathstrokeHBOMax in every post.
Let's make sure @WarnerMedia @jasonkilar & @hbomax hear what the fans want! pic.twitter.com/bqW7F0cOPn
— #DeathstrokeHBOMax (@DeathstrokeHBO) April 5, 2021
#DeathstrokeHBOMax ⚔️⚔️⚔️ pic.twitter.com/CVrf7l4gdW
— #DeathstrokeHBOMax (@DeathstrokeHBO) April 5, 2021
If anyone deserves their own series it’s @JoeManganiello we NEED to see him shine as Slade Wilson/Deathstroke #DeathstrokeHBOMax pic.twitter.com/ieQjFHppXe
— sabrina 🦇 (@nightwaynes) April 5, 2021
This is what you have @hbomax :
An actor who is extremely passionate & dedicated to bringing an untapped comic book mercenary to the screen. And the fans are excited for this vision.
You know what this was last time it happened?Deadpool.
Greenlight this now#DeathstrokeHBOMax pic.twitter.com/4b0INK6OU2
— TreeSquid#RestoreTheSnyderVerse⚒ (@TreeSquid) April 5, 2021
https://twitter.com/UberKryptonian/status/1379111039934070784?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1379111039934070784%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fcomicbook.com%2Fmovies%2Fnews%2Fdeathstrokehbomax-joe-manganiello-deathstroke-series-movie-hbo-max-trends%2F
Listening to the fans, and making a low-budget John Wick style action drama featuring @joemanganiello as Deathstroke is a simple recipe for success and money ! #DeathstrokeHBOMax pic.twitter.com/qhdbxWcCZS
— ak (@xzscnx) April 5, 2021
A shoestring budget action series focused on Deathstroke seems like a no-brainer, especially in the era of John Wick. It would also help WB catapult Deathstroke into an A-list superhero after his roles in Arrow, Teen Titans, and the Arkham games. #DeathstrokeHBOMax pic.twitter.com/d5Py94M6Or
— TheBatSkeptic (@TheBatSkeptic) April 5, 2021
Hey @jasonkilar @hbomax @HBOMaxHelp please don't waste this potential and make #DeathstrokeHBOMax even @JoeManganiello wants this since day 1 so give it a green light and #RestoreTheSnyderVerse cast and fans wants this pic.twitter.com/NnyfF31xp3
— Can Türk (@Trxcann) April 5, 2021
RT if you want to see Joe Manganiello as Deathstroke again. #DeathstrokeHBOMax pic.twitter.com/sWifclrW6a
— RTSchumacherCut 💚 (@CutSchumacher) April 5, 2021
Of course, we still have no idea what the future holds for the SnyderVerse despite the rampant speculation, but you’d have to imagine that Deathstroke would be one of the first names on the list to return should either Warner Bros. or HBO Max dive back into that side of the mythology, given the undoubted potential that a solo project possesses.
